The Belize Zoo was founded in 1983 as a retirement home for natural history "movie stars." It has since become a refuge and rehabilitation center for injured wildlife, as well as a home for abused and abandoned "pets." Because there are healthy populations of certain species of wildlife in Belize, it is easy (though also illegal) for people to acquire birds and animals which they attempt to domesticate for their own personal pleasure. People are most often unable to tame these animals, or they grow tired of their "pets." The Belize Zoo has played a major role in saving the lives of these animals by providing a new home for these orphans who are most often unable to return to their natural home in the wild.

Whenever possible, all wildlife that can be rehabilitated and are considered able to survive in the wild are reintroduced to their natural environment. Those animals that cannot be reintroduced to their environment are maintained in a natural setting at the zoo, where they become an integral part of an ongoing program to educate people about the natural history of Belize.

Want to improve your natural history experience? Be sure to make the Belize Zoo one of your first stops. Learn what the indigenous birds and animals of Belize look like and how to spot them in their natural habitat.

The Zoo is located 29 1/2 miles west of Belize City on the Western Highway, and is open daily--except on Good Friday and Christmas Day--from 9:30 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. The nominal admission fee of US$5.00 is used to support the facility and all of the associated education programs.

Find out more about the Belize Zoo by visiting their website at: http://www.belizezoo.org.

Follow the links below for more information about what to see on the mainland.

Belize City Belize Zoo St. Herman's Blue Hole National Park Cockscomb Basin WS Community Baboon Sanctuary

Crooked Tree Wildlife Sanctuary Five Blues Lake National Park Guanacaste National Park Mountain Pine Ridge Rio Bravo Management Area